


Dear Marina

by tsumika



Category: Splatoon
Genre: Diary/Journal, F/F, I guessssss, I’m actually planning on writing more of this, I’m super bad at tagging sorry lads, Pearlina, Wack, it’s a concept ig
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-11
Updated: 2019-04-12
Packaged: 2019-07-11 04:29:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 3,544
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15964724
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tsumika/pseuds/tsumika
Summary: pearl decides to write letters to marina to vent her feelings. they obviously don’t get sent and will never ever be found. obviously.





	1. chapter one

“Dear Marina,”  
God, she couldn’t believe she was even gonna consider doing this. Nothing good will come out of it. If Marina finds it, she’s doomed, but good lord she needed some way to get this off her chest.  
“So, hey, it’s me. Pearl. Your roommate. Your best friend. Your co-host. You know who I am, we spend pretty much every second together. Except you’re obviously not with me right now, or I’d just say this to your face. Actually, who am I kidding? I could never say this to your face. God this is dumb.”  
She could just crumple up the paper and pretend this had never happened, but doing that would cause this to bubble inside her for all of eternity. Why did this have to happen? Why was she writing in pen? Now she can’t erase out any terribly embarrassing mistakes without making it look horrendously scruffy. Goddamn it.  
“I have something I really gotta get off my chest. It’s dumb and stupid and gonna embarrass the living hell out of me to actually write, but I don’t really have any other way to vent. Marina Ida, I am genuinely, wholeheartedly in love with you. I’ve been thinking about it a ton lately and this is the amazingly thrilling conclusion I’ve come to. I know the feeling most likely isn’t mutual, but I’m already in too deep so I might as well add the details. I love your cute little quirks and your gorgeous singing voice and every single little tiny thing about you. It’s sappy but true. Sorry if you accidentally find this Rina, just pretend you never saw it. Love you, obviously. \- Pearl”  
Well, that sorta helped, she supposed. Now it’s time to pretend that never happened. But for some odd reason, Pearl decided she didn’t have it in her to destroy something she poured her heart into. Obviously she wasn’t gonna leave it on her desk, that’s a surefire way to get caught. And if she got caught, then boy, she’d never live it down. She’d probably end up moving to some far off land, living as a humble farmer named Hudson. Instead, she neatly folded it into a tiny slip and placed it inside her bedside table. It was just a one time thing anyways, and that draw is full of junk, there’s no way anyone could find it unless they were extremely devoted to. And even if they did, it’s one sheet of paper, it could’ve been fabricated, no one would ever question it. Definitely.


	2. chapter two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> marina does some spring cleaning in september because pearl doesn’t know how to clean up after herself

It was strange. Pearl had started spending way more time cooped in her room recently, and she seemed a lot more on edge too. Marina figured she probably had some sort of secret, and that’s fine and all, they don’t need to know every single minuscule detail about one another, but she seemed tense. Grossly tense. Tense to the levels of flinching when Marina tried to start up a conversation. Maybe she wasn’t getting enough sleep? That’s never good. Maybe it’s about time she confronted her about it.

Three gentle knocks have gotta be enough for Pearl to hear her, unless she’s blasting music or something along those lines, and since the octoling can’t hear anything behind the door, that’s probably not what’s happening. Pearl had made it abundantly clear to her that she despises headphones, and would much rather be loud and proud about her music taste.   
Three knocks and no response. That’s strange, Pearl usually tells her before she wanders off.   
“Pearl? Are you in there?”  
No reply yet again. Maybe she was asleep? Slowly but surely, Marina creeped open the door, and slowly but surely, it was revealed how much of a pigsty Pearl was currently living in. Stained mugs, some filled with cold coffee scattered across her desk, what seemed like thousands of empty energy drink cans piling up on the floor, making the entire room a maze to walk around without stepping on one and screwed up pieces of paper were all over the place. Simply put, it was an absolute mess.

She knew it probably wasn’t right, and Pearl would probably end up having a tantrum about it, but Marina decided that she absolutely had to do something about this absolute disaster of a living space. First things first though, she had to find out where Pearl had hightailed it off to.

To: Pearl  
“Hey Pearlie! I was just wondering where you went? I went in your room (I knocked I swear!) and you weren’t in. If you’re out and about could you maybe get me a crusty seanwich too? I’ll pay you back!”

Patiently, Marina tapped her foot and waited for the response. If she was gonna clean it, she’d at least hope the inkling is far way enough so she wouldn’t get caught and shanked for trying to be a good friend. 

From: Pearl  
“yea dude just wanted to chill round at arowana mall lol, I’ll be back by about 5ish?? I’ll get u a seanwich on my way back but if u want one soon u should probably get it urself lmao”

Back by around five, huh? A quick glance at the clock revealed it to be half twelve. Five whole hours to get this place cleaned up. How convenient! She’d better get to work. 

 

“Dear Pearl,  
Hey! I cleaned up your room while you were gone! Hope it’s okay that I went in while you weren’t there but if it’s not I got you a carton of orange juice as an apology! And it has pulp in, your disgusting favourite.  
-  
Marina  
P.S: I didn’t snoop or anything! I just cleaned up the floor, so don’t worry about me seeing any sort of secret song you might be writing! I wouldn’t want to ruin the surprise for myself!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have no idea where I’m going with this story but I’m having fun writing it so uhhhhh that’s something?? as always constructive criticism is super appreciated but I’m rlly tired at the moment and don’t rlly know what else to say gghhhh so bye for now dudes


	3. chapter three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> pearl panics about seanwiches way too much

Arowana had always had a peaceful vibe to it for Pearl. It’s never too crowded, the turf wars are fun to watch from a safe distance and the shops are generally fun to meander around. Since it’s always had such a carefree tone, it’s usually where she goes when she needs to relax and blow off some steam. And considering how much had been piling up on her chest recently, it was a much needed break. Unfortunately, it’s rather easy for her to lose track of time in the mall, usually only being brought back to her senses when the shops begin to close. And of course, this had just so happened to occur today. Which wasn’t good, because for once, she actually had a relatively good reason to get a shift on and get back home as soon as possible. That reason being Marina. 

Okay, so maybe she was overreacting. It wasn’t the end of the world. Marina wouldn’t suddenly leave her side just because she was a little late home. She wouldn’t leave her for being a little slow on her seanwich delivery. Marina wasn’t like that. Marina was kind, forgiving and pretty much every positive trait Pearl could conjure up from the top of her head. But now wasn’t the time to get cheesy, now was the time to hurry up and buy that goddamn seanwich. And luckily for her, his truck just so happened to be nearby.

Two warm seanwiches in hand, Pearl began to relax a little as she strolled down the strangely empty streets. As she turned the corner and made her way to their apartment, she had the sudden realisation that opening this door could prove to be quite the unnecessary challenge. Tossing the seanwiches into one hand and using the other to worm its way into her cardigan pocket, she eventually managed to find her keys and flung the door open.

“Honey I’m home, and I bring food!” Pearl shouted. She needed to get the octolings attention somehow. And it wasn’t like she was lying or anything, her quest was indeed a success. As if on que, she heard distant footsteps draw in closer.  
“Pearlie! Thank you! I was wondering when you were gonna get back, don’t worry me like that!”  
Oh. She wasn’t trying to concern her. Then again, she probably should’ve at least given the girl a warning.  
“Oh yeah, sorry about that. I just needed some time alone to unwind, you know? Probably should’ve told you beforehand, sorry.”  
“Don’t worry about it! You brought me what I asked for, so I can’t complain too much. Anyways, let’s eat!”

There’s something about food that makes things a lot less uncomfortable. Since they both have food in their mouths, it’s harder for Marina to press on. Then again, she didn’t feel as though she was going to press on much. Marina wasn’t like that. She didn’t care about what Pearl does, as long as she’s safe. Which, in hindsight, is a delightful trait to have, but in Pearl’s case, it just made things harder. How much harder could she possibly fall for her? And more importantly, how long could she keep it to herself?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey it’s currently rlly late and I’m rlly tired but sorry for not updating in a while!! I’ve been a bit busy with school and moving and all that mumbojumbo. maybe eventually I’ll have an update schedule?? idk I’m not good at stickin to them. as per usual feel free to correct any spelling errors and sentences that don’t sound right!! thanks for reading lads


	4. chapter four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> a series of unfortunate overthinking related events

Upon trudging towards her sweet sweet room, Pearl seemed to notice something. Nothing that’d make anyone else concerned, and nothing that really meant anything to anyone other than herself. She seemed to be aware of the fact her door was slightly open. Which is strange, to her at least. She knew for a fact she had closed it on her way out, for if she hadn’t closed it something terrible might happen. Something terrible like her pure, precious roommate would find out about her pathetic pining. And believe it or not, she didn’t want that. So seeing that sight was mildly concerning. Either her memory was playing tricks on her, or Marina had been in her room. Which is the worst possible outcome, if that wasn’t clear. Oh well, she could get past it for now.

Pushing her door open was surprisingly easy, considering how much was piled up on her floor. Or that’s what she would’ve said if her floor wasn’t perfectly clean. That’s new. And not right in the slightest. Turning her head slightly, she spotted a note neatly placed on her bedside table. That’s also new. Something was wrong here. Picking up the note, she read what’d been written. Marina had tidied her room. But she also wrote that she hadn’t done any peaking, as she apparently thought she was “working on a new song” or something along those lines. How oddly convenient. Even with that being said, and even with Marina being a generally honest and trustworthy octoling, she couldn’t help but feel uneasy. Her roommate was one wrong step away from uncovering her letters, all her feelings messily scribbled onto various technicolour sheets of paper. That was never a nice thing to think about.

But christ, she did not have the energy to think about all this right now. She was genuinely and wholeheartedly exhausted, probably due to not only an extreme lack of sleep but also thanks to her constant trailing around all day. Why does she do this? Slowly but surely, she made her way to her newly made bed and flung herself onto the mattress. She’ll finish her seanwich once she wakes up.

Little did she know how tragically groggy she’d feel when she’d eventually awaken. Her brain felt like mush and her body felt like it’d been thrown against the wall. Great. What time was it anyways? She couldn’t have slept for that long, right? Flicking on the terribly bright screen of her phone revealed it was exactly 3:48am. Nevermind then. Her seanwich had definitely gone cold by now. Damn it. She felt far too tired to keep her eyes open any longer, but like hell she’s gonna leave a perfectly good seanwich to rot. Several blind hand slams later, she just so happened to land on the paper wrapping that covered it. Score. Now she just had to pick it up. This unfortunately proved to be rather difficult when it’s being done with both eyes closed, believe it or not. All the fillings were falling out and the toppings had most likely fell on the floor, but she was in far too deep now, refusing to give up. She was going to eat this disgustingly cold seanwich if it was the last thing she did. So that’s what she did. Horrendously cold seanwich entrails filled her mouth, but no matter how terrible it now tasted, she for some reason refused to simply get up and heat it up again. She couldn’t do that. If she did that her tiredness would wear off, because that’s how things work goddamn it! Various weirdly soggy bites later and it was finally gone. She could finally rest in peace. Finally.

At least she would’ve been able to. But now she was awake. Awake and abundantly aware that Marina could’ve lied in the note she found. She was restless. Marina wasn’t the type to lie, she’d been over this. She’s a lovely girl! She’d never do something like that! But then the thought of “what if she did?” decided to peak its head around the corner, and that’s when it all went wrong. Terribly wrong. How is she meant to confront the octoling about it? Should she even bother confronting her? Or should she just let it fester instead? What if Marina thinks she’s disgusting now? What if she thinks she’s obsessed? She’d definitely be creeped out, she’d probably leave. Then again, she usually acts quicker. Maybe she was just overthinking this. She was surely overthinking this. Maybe she just needed some kind of way to sneak it into a conversation. Unfortunately, her lack of sleep was finally starting to catch up with her. There was no point trying to conjure up a plan now, it’d end up sounding completely and utterly nonsensical by the time she’d woken up. It was probably best just to get some shut eye.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yes I wrote an entire paragraph of sandwich eating because I’m tired n dumb  
> let me kno if anything sounds weird I always appreciate some good ol constructive criticism,, also if u have any ideas of what I should add in then do tell. I hav a vague idea of where this is goin but the key word is vague  
> sorry 4 not updatin in forever as well lol


	5. chapter five

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> it’s coffee time. that’s it that’s the entire chapter

Marina had never been a morning person. Waking up has always felt like a chore and dragging yourself out of your comfortingly warm bed simply to do mundane tasks is never fun. Despite this fact, it’s blatantly obvious that at the very least she’s more of a morning person than Pearl. It was around 2pm and she still wasn’t up! Had she had a late night or something? It’s not like she’s much of a party girl, maybe she was just up writing that new song she’s been working on? That was probably it.

Well, she wasn’t far off, Pearl definitely did keep herself up writing a certain something, but it wasn’t a new song as far as she knew. It’d gotten out of hand, there were almost hundreds of these letters, all of which went on rambling about her love for her roommate. It was weird. She should probably stop. But she couldn’t. How else was she meant to get this stuff off her chest? It’s not like she could just tell her, there’s about one whole way that wouldn’t go wrong! Maybe she should just get it over with. Maybe she should just wait for it to fester and die. Or maybe she could try dropping hints? Marina can’t be that oblivious, right? She’s a smart girl. She can totally figure it out on her own. Totally.

“Good afternoon sleepyhead, you need some coffee or something?”  
Wait, afternoon? Christ, she probably should’ve looked at her alarm clock instead of wallowing in her own self doubt.  
“Coffee would be nice, thanks ‘Rina, you’re the best.”  
Maybe her eyes were playing tricks on her, which honestly wouldn’t be all too surprising as she woke up a whole four minutes ago, but she could’ve sworn that nickname combined with a compliment just so happened to darken Marina’s cheeks. Then again, she is relatively head over heels at this point, so the chances of her simply imagining it are much higher than they would’ve been in any other situation, so it’d probably be best to just put her thoughts on hold for now and focus on actually waking up, and she was sure coffee would at least slightly help. 

Luckily for her, Marina just so happened to make her coffee in the blink of an eye, which was both impressive and relatively concerning. Maybe the kettle had just been on? Who knows. She was just glad she could finally start waking up.  
“So, Pearlie, I don’t wanna pry or anything but recently, you’ve been spending way more time kooked up in your room, and I was just wondering if you’d ever show me what you’ve been up to? Is it a new song or something like that? You know, you don’t have to keep stuff like that secret from me, right?”  
Oh, oh dear. This could cause some slight issues.  
“Ah, don’t worry about it! I’ll definitely show you once it’s ready and all, but you know how messy they can be when you’re stuck in the middle, you know? Like, uh...”  
This wasn’t going too well.  
“Well, just be sure to show me when you’re ready, alright!”  
“Yeah, sure.”  
Despite those words, Pearl somehow strongly doubted she’d ever actually come clean, more importantly though, dear god could Marina be oblivious.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry if this seems filler-y n sorry 4 not updating in foreverrrrr motivation comes once every million years so that’s cool  
> I’ll actually make smth happen in the next chapter don’t worry I just wanted to finish this bc it’s been half done 4 a while n I was like B) time 2 do smth B) n finished it up  
> hopefully it’s not too shoddy but as alwaysssss constructive criticism is p epical anyways gnnnnnn


	6. chapter six

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> marina decides to finally take some sort of action, which obviously ends wonderfully.

Marina had never considered herself a nosy person. Others could keep their secrets and she’d keep hers, but dear god her ideologies are being tested. Pearl had been hiding in her room for almost two months now, only coming out when they needed to present the news, when she wanted a snack or whenever she felt like going on a wander, (which had started to happen much more recently, but for some reason Marina was never invited) and if she’s being completely honest with herself, it’s getting way lonelier than what she’s comfortable with. What kind of song takes this much effort? Was she just sick of hanging out? She sure hoped not. One little peak couldn’t hurt anyone, right?

If she was being perfectly honest with herself, it did feel rather wrong waiting for Pearl to eventually leave her room and go off to do her own thing, but her curiosity finally being dulled down mattered far more to her at this point. You see, Marina realised that, almost every day now, the inkling would go out to wherever and come back with two seanwiches at around five. Meaning she’d be able to put her plan into action at about four. And what time did it just so happen to be? Around half three. As strange and somewhat invasive as it may be, she couldn’t wait! Of course it’d be more rewarding for Pearl to eventually show her, but it was taking so long, no sane person would be able to stay patient for that long. It had to be worth it.

After what felt like the longest half hour of her life, she finally heard the inkling’s door squeak open.  
“Hey ‘Rina, you want a seanwich today or should I get something else?”  
“A seanwich would be fine! I’ll be sure to pay you back!”  
“Alright cool, see you later.”  
Time to set her plan into action. 

Dear christ, the octoling had forgotten how much of a mess Pearl’s room was, and it seems it’s only gotten worse. There were piles upon piles of paper, some neatly folded, others torn and crumpled, along with what seemed like thousands of seanwich packaging scattered around the floor. But now was not the time for critiquing Pearl’s living conditions, she came here for one reason and one reason only. Read at least one of these pieces of paper, but there were so many options! How is she meant to pick just one? Maybe she should try read just one first, and if it’s got a catchy sounding verse in it, she could maybe own up to this whole thing and tell Pearl her songs are fine the way they are? She decided to pick one that’d been slightly torn around the edges, figuring that if she were to pick one that already looked like hell Pearl probably wouldn’t notice.

“Dear Marina,  
I think you’ve realised I’m spending less time with you, which sucks for the both of us you know, well at least I hope it does. It’d kinda suck if you don’t even miss me a little bit ‘cause then what kind of chance do I even have? It’s just been getting a lot harder since I started doing this, which is super duper dumb since I started doing this so I wouldn’t get super duper trouper flustered around you and I could keep it in a lil box called the entirety of my room, but it’s so hard! Everyone in Inkopolis feels the same way! You could just look at someone and they’d instantly fall in love! How am I meant to not be head over heels for you when you look at me so much! You’re really something special, you know? I wish we could hang out as much as we used to. Maybe one day I’ll get the guts to finally be honest with you about this and we can put it behind us and chill again. Probably not too likely though  
\- Love, Pearl”

Ah. Maybe snooping wasn’t the best idea after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yo it’s rlly late rn but I was in a real good mood n felt like finishing this off so hope it’s alright!! let’s finally get this plot movin baby!!!! if anything sounds dodgy let me kno I’ll just blame it on the fact I’m abt to fall asleep lolll hope u all have a good day/had a good day see u all later or soon idk :p

**Author's Note:**

> this concept has definitely been done before way better but haha u know what they say! also sorry for dying for like a month I’m lazy  
> feel free to correct any grammatical errors or anything that sounds weird constructive criticism is rad


End file.
